The present invention relates to an assembly for protecting and fastening pipes to a supporting structure, particularly of a vehicle, and more specifically to an assembly for protecting and fastening pipes, such as fuel and/or brake oil feed pipes, to a vehicle underbody.
On currently marketed vehicles, the brake oil feed pipe is made mostly of metal, and the fuel feed pipe of plastic, except for the portion thereof located in the engine compartment which, to protect the pipe against engine heat, or accidental contact with the vehicle body in the event of violent impact, is made of metal and connected to the plastic portion.
One known element or bracket for fastening pipes, e.g. fuel and/or brake oil pipes, to the vehicle frame or underbody comprises a rigid-plastic body having a surface which rests on the frame, and half-open substantially cylindrical pipe seats defined partly by the body itself and partly by a curved elastic wall which flexes to permit insertion of the pipe. A sleeve with a head is inserted inside a hole through the element between two seats, and clicks onto an electrowelded fastening pin (TUCKER.RTM.) projecting downwards from the frame or underbody, and from which the sleeve can only be unscrewed.
Pipes fitted as described above are obviously subject to damage in the event of an accident, or, if made of plastic, by the heat generated by the engine in the engine compartment, or by the exhaust pipe. To protect the pipes, independent protection elements are therefore used, which are assembled separately from the brackets and fitted directly to the vehicle body or inside seats on further elements formed integral with the brackets. Besides being expensive, such protection elements therefore involve a long painstaking assembly process.